Manchester United (1/3) will look to continue their rapid start to the new Premier League season when Leicester City visit Old Trafford on Saturday evening.
The Red Devils have secured two 4-0 victories against West Ham United and Swansea City so far this campaign and plenty of punters will fancy Jose Mourinho’s men to continue their fine run of form.
Meanwhile, Leicester were on the losing end of a seven-goal thriller against Arsenal on the opening weekend but got back to winning ways against Brighton & Hove Albion.
With Jamie Vardy looking sharp in the early stages of the campaign, Craig Shakespeare’s side could be set to cause a few problems for Mourinho’s side here...
No Zlatan, No Worries
News of Zlatan Ibrahimović’s return to Old Trafford was confirmed just a few days ago but it will be down to Romelu Lukaku to lead the line for the time being.
The Belgium striker is off and running in a United shirt having scored in each of their two Premier League fixtures so far and he is currently available at 5/2 to open the scoring in this contest.
The likes of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Paul Pogba have all flourished in recent weeks and United’s potent attacking unit may overpower the Leicester defence.
With eight goals in just two top flight games, Mourinho’s men have hit the ground running and the Red Devils could run riot if they get an early goal on Saturday evening.
With that in mind, backing United to be leading at half-time may be the best option. At the time of writing, the hosts are valued at 4/6 to win the opening 45 minutes and supporters will be expecting another fast start.
Finishing well is equally as important as starting well but an early goal will settle the Old Trafford faithful down.
Don’t Write The Foxes Off
If Leicester’s extraordinary 2015/16 title-winning campaign told us one thing, it is to expect the unexpected. In football, you can never take anybody for granted and the Foxes will be quietly confident of upsetting United here.
Their recent record against the Red Devils isn’t great but we cannot rule Leicester out completely.
Shakespeare will have a game plan – you can be sure of it. Vardy has the pace and tricky to cause problems for this United defence and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Leicester adopt a very direct approach.
With the exception of Antonio Valencia, this Red Devils back four isn’t the quickest and the Foxes could take full advantage of this.
As of August 24th, the Foxes are valued at 17/20 to get on the scoreboard at Old Trafford – a decent price to say the least. United have been dominant in the early stages of the season but that form won’t last forever.
Eventually, Mourinho’s defensive unit will fall and Leicester have the attacking talent to end United’s resistance.
Prediction
For me, a United win with both teams scoring is the best bet here – currently available at 41/20 with 888Sport. The Red Devils are in supreme form right now and should be too hot for Leicester; even if the Foxes produce their best effort.
The visitors should have enough to test the Red Devils though but this may be a step too far...
MANCHESTER UNITED 3-1 Leicester City (priced at 19/2 with 888Sport)
